In one of the coldest frontiers on earth, road construction crews begin the process of creating the most unique passage in the world---a 350-mile highway of ice. Truck drivers from all over North America make the long journey to Yellowknife, Canada for their chance at some quick cash. For every load they haul across the ice, truck drivers can makes as much as $2000 a load. If they have the stamina and strength to weather the brutal temperatures and severe blizzards, they can make a year's salary in just eight weeks. But they have to move fast and get as many loads as possible, before spring arrives and the road melts away.
Jay Westgard hauls a 17-ton water tank over 31 inches of ice to the De Beers Diamond mine. It's the heaviest load to go up the frozen highway this season and it stresses both the driver and the ice. Jay is extremely cautious not to drive too fast or else the weight of this load will create a wave under the ice that could break through and damage the road. Once he arrives, we're given an extremely rare glimpse of this remote diamond operation in the tundra.
It's the second week of the ice road season and the brutal temperatures of -40 degrees are already taking their toll on the truckers. Alex Debogorski hauls a 44,000 pound diamond ore crusher across 350-miles of ice to the BHP mine. It's a one-of-a-kind piece of equipment worth more than half a million dollars. While on the road, Alex encounters a thick patch of ice fog. It's threatening enough that he turns to prayer to make it through. What Alex doesn't know is that ice fog is only the beginning, up ahead, a severe arctic storm causes white out conditions and forces a road closure.
It's the 18th day of the ice road season and truckers have delivered more than 3000 loads to the diamond mines, but they still have 7000 more to go. The temperatures are dropping, the loads are getting heavier and the ice is just three feet thick. A 50-ton fuel tanker flips over at the beginning of the ice road. Emergency crews race to prevent an environmental disaster and remove the truck from the middle of the road before it blocks traffic and threatens the success of the entire season.
It's half way through the grueling ice road season. Six hundred truckers have ferried more than 4,000 loads to the northern mines. They still have 6,000 left to go, but everyday roadblocks threaten their progress. Blowouts are appearing in the ice as a result of reckless speeding. Going a few miles over the speed limit is one thing on a regular road, but on ice it's a different story. Speeding creates a wave beneath the truck that can crash through to the surface. Secure Check, the police of the ice road, are on patrol. Todd White, one of Hugh Rowland's drivers, is busted for speeding. Road officials offer no second chances and he is kicked off the road.
Truckers have battled nearly a month of twenty-four hour operations in temperatures of forty degrees below zero. They've hauled more than 100,000 tons of supplies to isolated mining camps in the tundra. But accidents and strict safety regulations have sent many drivers packing. The ice road is testing the limits of man and machine and one trucker is about to fall through the ice.
Rookie TJ Tilcox suffers a debilitating blow. While driving on the ice, he's overcome with abdominal pain from an earlier injury strapping down a load. The pain becomes so excruciating that he starts lapsing in and out of consciousness. Secure check rescues him from his truck and medivacs him back to Yellowknife. TJ is treated at the local hospital for dehydration and inflammation. TJ survives, but the hospital trip is a major financial setback for him, costing him close to $12,000. Despite his pain, he's anxious to get back on the ice, and to make some money in the "dash for the cash".
Rick Yemm, Jay Westgard, Alex Debogorski and TJ Tilcox are all driving in the special convoy. Rick suffers another round of mechanical problems before he even get to the ice. TJ gets separated from the convoy just as the brutal storm hits the ice road. The rest of the convoy makes it to the Diavik mine just before high winds and blowing snow cause Secure Check to shut down the road. They crew is stranded at Diavik for 16 hours with no word from TJ.
It's day 53 of the ice road season. Only the toughest truckers remain on a road that's sent many people packing. These final days will push those who are still behind the wheel to the limit. As they race for the last of the cash, they'll have to cross untested roads, haul record breaking weights and face new challenges in order to meet their elevated goal of 10,000 loads before the big melt of spring puts an end to it all.
On the season finale of Ice Road Truckers, spring brings a rush of warm weather and the big melt begins. The road is nearly empty as only the toughest or craziest truckers remain. There's a race to the finish between: Alex, Hugh, Jay and T.J. Alex and Hugh are neck and neck fighting for the top load count, but the road is down to its final days and every trip could be their last.